My Current Skincare - For Sensitive/Dehydrated/Eczema Prone Skin

So I haven't really posted for a long, long time (apart from college related posts) and to ease myself back into it I thought I'd dabble a bit into skincare and write about my current favourite products.

For the past two years my skin has been all over the place and a major knock to my confidence. Up until my last year of school my skin was very clear and I only had a bit of dryness on my face, although I'd suffered with eczema on my hands since primary school. Stress and changes in weather seem to make my eczema flare up and my face to become extremely dry and flaky between my eyebrows, on my cheeks, on one side of my face and even my eyelids and it's only recently that I feel I finally have control over my skin with the products I'm using. I'll admit I've never been very good at drinking enough water, the one factor which aids for better skin, however even drinking more didn't seem to make a difference, and other moisturises for 'dry/sensitive' skin have never been hydrating or gentle enough for my extremely awkward skin.

After becoming frustrated at having to apply multiple layers of cheaper brands of moisturiser (Simple, Nivea, Garnier) just so that my skin actually felt moisturised, I spent ages reading reviews for La Roche Posay, Vichy and Avéne products on the Boots website. I decided to try Avéne Skin Recovery Cream for hypersensitive and irritable skin and got the thermal water spray for free on offer at Boots. So far I've really been enjoying using it and I feel like it's made a massive difference to my skin. In the morning I'll wipe my face with a cotton pad soaked in water, gently pat dry, spray my damp skin with the thermal water, wait for that to soak in, and then apply the cream to lock in as much moisture as possible.

The spray is really cooling and has really helped to calm down any redness in my skin, and the cream has pretty much eliminated any dry patches I had while leaving my skin feeling plump and well moisturised. The cream is £16.50 (Boots) so more than I'd have usually spent on a moisturiser, but it's well worth the money because it does exactly what it says on the bottle, and the thermal water spray (usually £10) came free with it so a win win :-).

The consistency of the cream is quite thick, and has no scent whatsoever as you would expect. 



To remove my makeup I use Garnier Micellar Cleansing water which I've been using for over a year. It removes makeup really quickly, adds hydration, and is great for sensitive skin because it doesn't irritate or leave the skin feeling tight afterwards. For my night time routine, I use this, followed by the Avene thermal spray and cream.

Aveeno is a really great brand for eczema prone skin. For years I used E45 recommended by my doctor, and although it may work perfectly fine for some people, it left my hands red, greasy and raw looking. Aveeno hand cream is non greasy, absorbs quickly, lasts through hand washing, and above all it really moisturises my skin and has helped to improve the appearance of my hands. The daily moisturising lotion is also great to use if you suffer eczema/dry skin on your body.

So there are my current skincare favourites. I really hope this is helpful for anyone who has a similar skin type and has been struggling to find products that work because I know for one how much dry/sensitive/eczema prone skin sucks!

Thanks for reading!

Em x